Desk, table, or cabinet.



C. DE VLEES GHOUWER & J. TACOMA.

DESK, TABLE, 0R CABINET. APPLIOATION FILED FEB.20, 1913.

Patented Dec. 2, 1913. 4. 1 F

W immom rfi/w i! CAMIILE DE VLEESGHQUWERJOHANN ES TACOMA, ,OF AMSTERDAMQNETHER LANDS.

DESK, Ill-X13155 01B, GAIBINE'L.

Specificationof Letters Patent.-

Application filed: February 2'0, 19 13-2 Serial Noa749015 To all whom rt may concern Be it known that we, CAMILLE' DE VLEEsoH- oUwnn and J OHANNES TACOMA, subjects of the Queen of the N etherlands, both residing at Amsterdam, Kingdom of the Netherlands, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in or Connected with Desks, Tables, or Cabinets, of which thefollowing is a specification.

- The invention relates to improvements in or connected with desks, tables or cabinets but more particularly to a writing desk, adapted to support a disappearing typewriter or like machine wherein the central part of the top of the desk can be slid and folded in a particular manner into a vertical position beneath said top and a table or board normally situated in a space beneath the top of the desk is arranged to take, at the same time, by means of parallel motion levers the place of said central part of the desk top. A typewriter, calculating machine or the like may thus stand on the table or board in the interior central part of the desk beneath the top thereof readypart of the desk top is transmitted by means of levers and links to the table or board while the whole is balanced by springs and counter weights and a very moderate power is therefore suflicient to raise or lower the machine.

The device is particularly suitable for a Minister desk.

A desk or table constructed in the manner referred to always leaves, unlike other known systems of construction where an obliquely arranged board is merely made to fold with the machine attached to it, suiftcient space for the knees and legs of the op-' erator sitting in front of the same, and therefore, as regards comfort, is in no way inferior to an ordinary desk, while it is attended with the advantage of always keeping in readiness a typewriterv orlike machine of the usual size.

In the accompanying drawings which illustrate by way of example a desk, supporting a typewriter, constructedaccording to the present invention, Figure 1 is a vertical transverse section of the desk taken on the line 1-1 of Fig. 3. Fig; 2 is a similar view to Fig. l but with the central part of the desk top slid and folded back and the table or board and typewriter raised readyf'or use; Fig. 3lisa front elevation of frontthe desk partly'in section andFig, 4 is a elevation ofthe lever. andlink mech ga'nism separately drawn to" an increased jisconnectedtherewith means of pivot-' 1 ally mounted arms or: lin is scale.

The central partl of t-he top 2 of the desk 3. and 4 in such 3 manner that the central part 1, which is approximately of the .both sides by'armsj width necessary to af knees, is supported on I or. links 3 and 41 The arms or links 3 and 4t rotate around the ford space for the 3 short fixe d jo'urnals orpivots 6 and? which f pro ect from the'inne-r wallsf) of thedesk; The arms 8 are pivotally connected with j the central part I thereof by means oft-he j ou-rnals-8: while the 5 arms 4 rotate around 1 at or'near the front edge the journals 9 upon the central part 1 at ornear the rear edge gthcreof; The length of the arms3 and 4 3 and' the-position of'the journalsSand 9are so calculated that the slid or swung back 5 position for use. The motion of the movable central central part1 can be g from the horizontal (Fig; 1) into a vertical position (*Fig: The horizontal typewriter table 10' is-suspende'don both sidesuponthelinks 5 or arms 11 and 12' which guide. uponwhich the typewriter Now in order that the table 10, or like machine is placed, maybe raised and brought for ward, while the central board l is' folded or pushed back, arms or levers 13 are farnished which are fixed with the arms 4 while bell crank levers-15, capable of rotatmg about fixed pivots 14: are connected 1 by meansof the intermediate links 16 and 17 with the arms13'and with the links12.

After the displacement of the central part 1 of the top 2 of the desk, the mechanism assumes the position illustrated in Fig: 2 whenthe typewriter is raised. The movable parts could easily be balanced by means of counte'rweights, but it is preferable toemploy springs for that purpose; According to this invention; the rods 12' are con-- nected withtorsion springs'18 in an appropriate manner asshown-in Fig. 4. Small boxes 19 which are connected with the arms 4, pass-through the walls 5, while the flanges .20 of said boxes are connected with the springs- 18; The pivots 24 of the arms 12 are-extended across the side drawers 21 of thedesk and are secured to the outer walls 22. The ends of the springs are now rigidly Patented Dec. 2,1913.

form a parallel connected with the fixed flanges attached to the eXtensions of the pivots 2 1 and by an appropriate choice and arrangement of springs, the whole can be balanced.

It is clear that when the typewriter is in its raised position as shown in Fig. 2, pressure upon the table 10 or upon the typewriter cannot bring down the said table because such pressure is transmitted to the front end of the arms 12 and said arms which rotate around the pivot-s 24, are supported by the intermediate links 17 and the bell crank levers while the pivots 25, 26

-. and: 14 lie in a straight line or at adead ver 15 is turned back by the arms 4 and the ing upon the arms 13 and the intermediate parts 16 of the same, and finally the position of the parts is again as illustrated in Fig. 1. In order to permit the lowering of the several links or arms these are arranged in different vertical planes and, where necessary, bent in such manner that the motions thereof do not interfere with one another (Fig. 4). Now in order that the machine standtable 10 may be protected in thefront when the desk is closed (Fig. 1), a wall 31, capable of rotation around the axes 30 is provided between the inner walls 5 of the desk while c-ounterweights 32 tend to keep this wall vertical. Upon the central part 1 being turned over or folded, the wall 31 is tilted forward (Fig. 2) by the front edge of the table 10, while upon the desk being closed again, the wall 31 is made to return to the projection 33 and is then kept in a vertical position by the flange or pro jection 35 arranged upon the lower edge of the central part 1 and furnished with a groove 34:.

What we claim is:

1. In a desk, a movable section in the center of the desk top adapted to be swung into a vertical position beneath the same, links by one end pivotally mounted on fixed centers and at the other end pivotally connected to said movable section for supporting and guiding the same, a table for carrying a typewriter or other machine suspended upon links pivotally mounted at one end upon fixed centers beneath the desk top and at the other end pivotally connected to said table, springs for counterbalancing the weight of the machine upon the table, a bell crank, links coupling one arm of said bell crank with the links of the movable section and the other arm with the links of the table in such manner that when the latter is in its raised position certain of said coupling links will be at dead center and thus support the table, a pivotally mounted front-board and weights for counter-balancing said frontboard substantially as set forth.

2. In a pedestal desk, a central movable section in the desk top at its front part pivotally supported on links pivotally mounted on the sides of the well or knee space of the desk, near the top thereof and at its rear part pivotally supported on links or levers having cranks or offsets and pivotally mounted on the sides of the well or knee space of the desk at a suitable point between the top and bottom of the desk the parts being so arranged that the movable section is adapted to be swung backward into a vertical position into the body of the desk, atable for carrying a typewriting or other machine suspended in a horizontal position at the front upon links pivotally mounted on the sides of the well or knee space immediately beneath the desk top and slightly to the rear of the pivots of the front links of the movable sect-ion and at or near the rear suspended on links curved to avoid the fixed pivots of the links of the movable section, the other ends of the curved links being pivotally mounted on fixed centers carried by the sides of the desk immediately beneath the top thereof, bell cranks turning on fixed centers at the sides of the desk, links connecting one arm of the bell cranks through links with the cranks or offsets of the links or levers of the movable section and the other arms of which bell cranks are pivotally connected to the curved links of the table, the parts being so arranged that when the table is in its raised position certain of said links will be at dead center and thus support the table substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof we have hereunto set our hands in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

OAMILLE on VLEESCHOUIVER. JOHANNES TACOMA.

Witnesses THOMAS H. VERI-IAVE, D. P. DE YoUNG.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Iatents, Washington, D. G. 

